Among Fans, Shock and Then a Divide

By JEN A. MILLER

Published: August 15, 2009

Fans in this sports-obsessed city seemed divided over the Eagles' signing of Michael Vick, but they were united in at least one response: shock.

''The whole city was full of people running outside to communicate with other people,'' said Tim Quigley, 26, who was at a bar for a bachelor party when he received the news via text message.

''I was just stunned, floored,'' said Ray Didinger, who started covering the Eagles in 1970 and is a commentator on Comcast's postgame show. He was in the press box at Lincoln Financial Field when the news broke during the second quarter of Thursday night's game between the Eagles and the New England Patriots, and like many reporters he was caught off guard.

''Whatever contact the team had, whatever time he spent here, whatever conversations he had with coaches, they did an amazing job of keeping that secret,'' Didinger said.

Whether the suddenness of the announcement had anything to do with Philadelphians' reaction, Vick's signing had a polarizing effect.

By Friday morning, Web sites had sprung up, one offering T-shirts demonstrating that ''the football community in Philadelphia welcomes Michael Vick with open arms,'' as advertised on the ''Vick Love'' site, and another encouraging fans to ''Sack Michael Vick'' and boycott the Eagles and the N.F.L.

Phone lines at local sports talk radio stations were jammed with fans who wanted to talk about Vick's conviction and 19 months of incarceration for his involvement in a dogfighting ring.

''It's so emotional because people have such strong feelings toward their pets,'' said John Maxymuk, author of three Eagles books. He noted that the reaction from callers on talk radio was ''very strongly negative.''

Regan Tilton Tighe, 28, was on vacation in Sea Isle City on the Jersey Shore when she read the news in a text message.

''I cried,'' said Tilton Tighe, a lifelong Eagles fan. ''Now I have to hate the Eagles. Now I don't have a team to root for anymore. There's no possible way I could ever root for them again. It makes me sick.''

Tilton Tighe, who lives in Camden County, N.J., owns a 4-year-old boxer, volunteers for New Jersey Boxer Rescue and bought her dog an ''I Hate Michael Vick'' T-shirt when he was first charged with dog abuse. She had accompanied her husband, a season-ticket holder, to Eagles home games. He will not be selling his tickets, she said, but she will not be going with him anymore.

Kevin Caviston, 33, of Barrington, N.J., another Eagles lifer, has offered via his Facebook page to buy out any season-ticket holders who say they are giving up on the team because of the Vick signing.

''I'm not condoning what he did,'' Caviston said. ''It's a horrible thing, but he served time in federal prison. He lost out on the benefit of having a multimillion-dollar contract with the Falcons. He's in bankruptcy.''

Animal rights activists scrambled to react to the signing.

Susan Cosby, chief executive of the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals, said that her organization had worked closely with the Eagles, but that its executives were as shocked as anyone about the advent of Vick.

''I know that some of our supporters think that we tacitly supported this, but the reality is this took us completely by surprise,'' Cosby said, noting that dogfighting was a major problem in Pennsylvania and that hers was one of the few animal welfare groups with officers dedicated to stopping dogfighting.

''Our objective remains the same, which is preventing cruelty to animals,'' she said.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society also expressed disappointment over Vick's signing.

But the Humane Society of the United States took a different approach. In May, the organization agreed to work with Vick in urban communities to combat dogfighting, most recently accompanying Vick to the South Side of Chicago, where he spoke at a church about his involvement in the practice.

''We didn't endorse his return to the N.F.L. or vouch for his character with any team,'' said Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society. ''We said we'll give him a chance to fulfill his pledge to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem.''

Pacelle added: ''He served his time and now he wants to pursue his livelihood, and he's also agreed to do de facto community service by reaching out to at-risk kids. It seems hardly inappropriate that he would be given either opportunity.''

Quigley, a dog owner and self-described ''fanatical'' Eagles fan, agreed. ''The guy served his time and I'm O.K. with it,'' he said. ''My only concern is they have a pieced-together offensive line and a left-handed quarterback coming in. But I'm very much O.K. with it.''